The Intersection of Interiority and Gender in Virginia Woolf's Novels: A Study of Fear and Optimism in the Inner Lives of Women in the 1920s

Abstract

This dissertation examines Virginia Woolf's works' complex interplay between gender, interiority, dread, and optimism, focusing on 1920s women. In the first chapter, we examine Woolf's female characters' fears and the social reasons that cause them. It claims that the First World War (WW1) and patriarchal society shaped 1920s women's emotions. The second chapter examines Woolf's optimism in multiple ways, including her depiction of women's changing roles and her rejection of patriarchal restraints as sources of hope and empowerment. Interiority here refers to Woolf's use of stream of consciousness and symbolism in Mrs. Dalloway and To the Lighthouse. Focusing on female characters in these writings, we learn how exterior circumstances cause anxiety and optimism in women's interior lives throughout this transitional era. This research reveals Virginia Woolf’s involvement with feminist issues is strongly based on her philosophical viewpoint and personal experiences as a woman. Her works provide essential insights into the search for a purpose in life and women’s roles in society. Woolf's writings reveal her female characters' innermost emotions and desires, demonstrating the delicate interplay between dread and optimism. She passionately fights for deconstructing patriarchal norms, pushing women to rewrite their history and publicly express their intelligence and creativity.